How would you fix either Dax?

[Admiral X]

I think he meant astronomer.

[Madner Kami]

I think he meant astronomer.

I certainly hope so, but then again, one can't be certain.

[Yukaphile]

I meant astronomer, yeah. Guy who looks at stars and what makes them tick. Like what Darren was in TNG's "Lessons."

[Actarus]

Making Ezri a counselor was a poor choice. Watching someone's meetings with their therapist is never going to be very interesting. Troi's usefulness on the show was never with psychotherapy, it was her ability to sense emotions. The need to make therapy show something useful happen in a 46-minute episode means resorting to tripe, like the episode where Ezri counseled Garak about his claustrophobia.

It also doesn't jive even closely with her personality. She's a jittery mess, often confused about herself, she often loses track of what she's even saying, and she possesses absolutely no sense of self confidence. This is not what I want to see in a counselor and it was demonstrated any time they tried to give her headshrink-type stuff to do.

Well, that's the point with Ezri. She was not a suitable host for Dax. The only reason why she was joined was because the Dax symbiont had to be implanted to a Trill to survive. Ezri was the only Trill on the ship, and they could not arrive on the Trill homeworld in time to retrieve the symbiont. Since she was unprepared, she had trouble to cope with all those memories, especially her relationship with Worf. Exemple: Jadzia never had any problem with Tobin Dax space sickness, but Ezri had. In my opinion, it made her story interesting. She had a flaw that she had to surmount, and it was possible to tell that story in one season.

The main reason Ezri should have been on the show is because of the Dax symbiote's history with the Klingons. The Klingons still had a continued respect for Curzon who was present at the Khitomer Conference, so keeping Dax near the frontlines during the strong allied push of the war is a decent idea. Sure, they had Worf, but having someone with the history of an actual diplomat who crossed the lines between Klingons and the Federation is useful.

The casting of Nicole de Boer didn't really help with this though. Sure, Terry Farrel was slender, but she had enough physical presence and grace that she didn't look ridiculous holding a bat'leth. There was some plausible sense that she could hold her own. Then she's replaced by a woman who weighs 90 pounds soaking wet. There's no way to put Ezri next to a Klingon warrior with a bladed weapon that doesn't make her look pathetic.

They wanted Ezri to be rather petite to contrast with Jadzia. She's no fighter, that's certain. Still, she played her role with Worf. To help him mourn Jadzia, of course, but also to help him see the truth about his own species. Since Curzon was two lives away, she had a very different perspective on Klingon culture. She made Worf realize that the Empire was not honorable, that he was unable to name one Chancellor he respected, that he had to cover up for several crimes of the higher-ups for the good of the Empire. She also told him that if he, the most honorable Klingon she knew, was willing to accept such corruption, then there was no hope for the Empire. It convinced Worf that he had to confront Gawron, depose him and place Martok in his place. Jadzia could not have played this role since she respected Klingon culture too much for that. Jadzia was a lover, but Ezri was that true friend that could frankly and boldly tell you the truth.